Receptacle, reservoir, and drainage system for vehicles that allows for the collection and disposal of unwanted beverage liquids whereby they are discarded within a vehicle, but escape through the exterior

ABSTRACT

A reservoir for discarded beverage liquids is affixed onto a vehicle, and accessed via a receptacle inside a vehicle. A vehicle&#39;s occupant discards beverage liquids into the receptacle which collects the liquid in a reservoir, and then a drainage tube allows those liquids to run out the undercarriage of the vehicle. Without stopping the vehicle, or opening the door or window, an occupant may conveniently and safely pour out and dispose of unwanted beverage liquids within the interior of a vehicle.

INTRODUCTION

I, Porter Elean Mills, am a citizen of the United States of America, a resident of 2127 Larkin Street San Francisco, Calif. 94109, and an applicant for a U.S. patent with small entity status associated with the customer number 000049248.

This application is for a non-provisional patent, and supersedes a previous application for a provisional patent application numbered U.S. 60/920,710, filed on Mar. 30, 2007. This though, is not a request for conversion of that provisional patent application, but rather the new submission of a separate, non-provisional patent application.

TITLE

A receptacle, reservoir, and drainage system for vehicles that allows for the collection and disposal of unwanted beverage liquids whereby they are discarded within a vehicle, but escape through the exterior.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates generally to the vehicle industry, and particularly to discarded beverage liquids collection and drainage within those vehicles. The invention relates specifically to improvements in vehicle interiors by creating a portal for conveniently collecting, draining and disposing of beverage liquids from within the interior of a vehicle regardless of whether that vehicle is in motion.

2. Prior Art

There are numerous examples of prior art referencing various applications involving beverages and vehicle applications. Yet, such references to beverages within vehicles fall into one or more of three categories: the storage or containment of beverages or their containers (eg: U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,887,709/6,070,927), controlling of the temperature of those beverages (eg: U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,892,137/6,155,063), a combination of containment and temperature control (eg: D442,443), or the dispensing of beverages (eg: U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,460,361/7,108,094). There are no references or prior art examples of the disposal or evacuation of unused or unwanted beverage liquids within a vehicle. There is a void in the art and a need for a means of discarding beverage liquids within the interior of a vehicle. When an occupant of a vehicle has unwanted beverage liquids and wishes to discard such liquids, there is a need for that occupant to be able to discard those liquids within the vehicle without the need to stop the vehicle, exit the vehicle, or open a door, or window to do so. There is a need in the art to provide vehicle passengers a receptacle, reservoir, and disposal means to facilitate the discarding of unwanted beverage liquids within the vehicle's interior, safely and slowly so that those liquids don't spill and cause damage to a vehicle's interior or become a dangerous distraction to the occupants.

SUMARRY

This invention provides a device designed to capture discarded beverage liquids within the interior of a vehicle and then facilitates the draining of those unwanted liquids out the exterior of the vehicle. Liquids are poured into the receptacle, are collected in a reservoir, and then those captured liquids run out through drainage tubing in a metered pace, slowly and safely out the undercarriage of the vehicle. These receptacle devices are incorporated either, 1) directly underneath a vehicle's cup holders, or, 2) independently into the sides of interior vertical surfaces (eg; center consol/transmission tunnel, dashboard faces, doors and side panels). The device is intended to facilitate the discarding of beverages within the interiors of vehicles so that unwanted beverage liquids won't be left to spill—with potentially damaging or dangerous results, and instead can easily and safely be discarded while inside the vehicle without requiring the occupant to stop the vehicle, exit the vehicle, or open windows or doors to evacuate such liquids while in motion.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1-1 illustrates the primary rendering of the vehicle beverage discarding receptacle and drainage device for horizontal applications such as underneath cup holders.

FIG. 1-2 illustrates the primary rendering of the vehicle beverage discarding receptacle and drainage device for vertical applications such as the sides of panels and fronts of dashboards.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

With reference to the drawing in FIG. 1-1 there is shown a receptacle 10, of substantial circumference and depth to engulf and secure the bases of drinking cups, cans and bottles. At the base of this receptacle 10 is a slotted surface 14 that allows both a surface by which the beverage container can sit and be supported, and also through which liquids may pass. This receptacle 10 slips into and attaches to a reservoir 11, which has ample volume to consume a minimum of sixteen ounces of discarded beverage. At the base of the reservoir 11, the cavity narrows down to greatly reduced narrow gauge tubing 12 so that the flow of the liquid is restricted prior to its exit from the undercarriage of the vehicle. This device is designed for horizontal surface mounting applications and is intended to work in conjunction with and underneath existing cup holders, or function as a cup holder itself with the added benefit of liquids disposal. The depth of the receptacle 10 would be adjusted accordingly: shallower if the application functions underneath existing cup holders or deeper if the receptacle is also functioning as the cup holder. A flat plastic or rubber disk 13, with a recessed pinch grip 15, is provided as a cover that sits on the slotted surface of the receptacle base 14. This cover 13 provides a lid for the slotted base surface 14 for the beverage container to rest upon until which time the liquid is to be discarded. The cover 13 is lifted using the pinch grip 15, so that the liquid can be poured through the slotted base 14 of the receptacle 10.

FIG. 2-1 illustrates a similar device to that in FIG. 1-1 for the collection and draining of beverage liquids, but the receptacle portion is altered slightly for vertical surface applications. The receptacle 20 in this application is curved up to 90 degrees to accommodate various vertical surface mountings. To further accommodate these vertical applications, the mouth of the receptacle 20 is accompanied by a soft rubber lip 23. This lip 23 flexes out to create a basin for liquids to more easily be poured into the receptacle 20. This flexible rubber basin lip 23 can then be folded back into the mouth of the receptacle 20 after use, so that the lip 23 and receptacle 20 can be hidden behind an enclosure door provided by the vehicle's manufacturer. The base 24 of the receptacle 20, the reservoir 21, and the exit tubing 22, otherwise replicate the design specifications of the previous drawing 1-1, with the omission of any cover on the slotted base 24 of the receptacle 20, given that no beverage will sit on this version's surface. 

1) A receptacle and reservoir device for the collection and drainage of disposable beverage liquids within the interior of a vehicle. 2) The device of claim 1, wherein said device functions in conjunction with a cup holder. 3) The device of claim 1, wherein said device functions independently of a cup holder. 4) The devices of claims 1, 2, and 3, wherein said devices are applied to any form of passenger transportation: automobiles, trucks, recreational vehicles, buses, campers, boats, aircraft, trains. 